193 Reasons to Have Pride: Part One

BY Advocate Contributors

May 16 2011 4:00 AM ET

BecauseTORCHWOOD IS MOVING TO AMERICA To be fair, British sci-fi hit Torchwood’s first three seasons have aired stateside on BBC America. But with Torchwood: Miracle Day, Capt. Jack Harkness (out actor John Barrowman) and his team of alien hunters head to America to investigate the sudden end of death on earth. Series creator Russell T. Davies (the original Queer as Folk, Dr. Who) promises fans that Miracle Day, which premieres on Starz in July, will be bigger, better, and, dare we say, gayer than ever. “We’ve got a big, new, wide canvas on Starz, and when they came on board Torchwood, they wanted more of everything,” Davies says. “More Jack, more boldness, more wit, more darkness, more heat. More of everything.”

BecauseABC & ABC FAMILY ARE MUST-SEE GAY TVModern Family is the other gayest show on TV. And now that Brothers & Sisters has hit a fifth-season creative stride (finally some good, gay drama for Ron Rifkin’s Uncle Saul) and Desperate Housewives has finally given Bob and Lee a story line, ABC remains the most gay-friendly of the major networks. But it’s ABC Family that has emerged as the real surprise with its gay-inclusive programming. Greek wrapped its run in March after delivering four seasons of realistic and honest storytelling for gay frat boy Calvin (Paul James). But the network still features fully realized gay characters on The Secret Life of the American Teenager and Pretty Little Liars. Also, this summer, out actress and model Jessica Clark stars with Raven Symoné on The Great State of Georgia.

BecauseOBAMA IS A CHAMP ON A GLOBAL SCALE Whereas George W. Bush spent eight years sidestepping the issue of gay rights in the United Nations, in March the Obama administration called on the U.N.’s Human Rights Council to fight discrimination against gays and lesbians around the world. The move came less than a week after President Obama announced with Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff the creation of a position to monitor gay rights in the Western Hemisphere, prompting the Human Rights Campaign to extol the U.S. government for stepping into the role of a worldwide leader in the fight for equality.

BecauseWE SAVE THE DAYIn the wake of bad press, highly publicized injuries, and a much-delayed opening, Broadway’s Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark welcomes three major gay additions to the creative team as Julie Taymor departs the production. Playwright Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, a former Big Love scribe who has written Spider-Man stories for Marvel Comics, has swooped in to rewrite the musical’s book. The Boy From Oz’s Philip William McKinley and Chase Brock of the Chase Brock Experience have also come to the rescue as the musical’s new director and choreographer, respectively. The $65 million musical, which will take a hiatus to implement this heroic trio’s changes, will now open June 14.

BecauseTHERE’S NO MINIMUM AGE REQUIREMENT FOR JOINING THE FIGHT When Logan Voxx founded the Positive Young People Foundation at the tender age of 21, the fact that he had no experience running a nonprofit didn’t deter him. He aligned himself with a team of experienced advisers who all shared a singular mission: reducing the rate of HIV infection among people aged 18-30. “Seeing so many people, at 20 years old, become HIV-positive, especially in the gay community, especially in the African-American community — that was really hard for me,” Voxx explains. “Most of my friends, even some family, are HIV-positive.” In 2011, Voxx says, the foundation will launch a billboard campaign throughout Southern California in an attempt to raise awareness about local testing facilities and available treatments and to get people talking about HIV/AIDS like it’s not a thing of the past. He’s one of many young people changing the face of gay activism. Adam Bouska was just 25 when he kick started the No H8 Campaign, which now includes photos of everyone from Cindy McCain to Kim Kardashian. And though it may be a bit premature to call him a philanthropist, at just 7 years old, a boy named Malcolm made quite an impression when he took $140 given to him by his grandmother and donated it to the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center and the Human Rights Campaign because he thinks gays and lesbians should be allowed to marry.